[0:03] Okay, the date is October 5,
[0:05] 2026. The time is 7:15.
[0:08] I am now announcing a
[0:09] public hearing
[0:10] on Ordinance 2026-24
[0:12] to transfer the
[0:12] real property, or
[0:14] Stroh property, to the
[0:15] beginning. Is there
[0:16] anyone in the audience who would
[0:17] like to speak?
[0:21] Since there is
[0:21] no one present, we are closing the
[0:23] public hearing
[0:24] on Ordinance 2026-24 and
[0:25] we will see everyone in
[0:26] about 15
[0:27] minutes at
[0:28] our council meeting. Thank you. On the 5th,
[0:50] I am calling the
[0:53] October 2026 City Council meeting
[0:54] to order.
[0:55] Please stand and
[0:56] take the Pledge of
[0:57] Allegiance.
[1:01] Pledge allegiance to the
[1:02] flag of the United
[1:03] States of America and to
[1:04] the republic it
[1:05] represents, one
[1:06] nation under God,
[1:07] indivisible, with
[1:08] liberty and
[1:09] justice for
[1:10] all.
[1:15] Okay, first of all, we,
[1:16] uh, didn't have any
[1:17] presentations on the
[1:18] agenda, but
[1:19] we do have one
[1:20] presentation, uh,
[1:21] tonight,
[1:22] so I'm going to go to the
[1:23] podium. Okay, sir, would
[1:37] you like to
[1:38] come over?
[1:39] How are you doing?
[1:40] Nice
[1:41] to meet you. Okay,
[1:45] so we have a
[1:46] proclamation for Carroll
[1:47] Community Media, uh, Carroll County
[1:48] Community Media Center, who
[1:49] do a lot of
[1:50] good work, uh, not
[1:51] just for our
[1:52] municipality, but
[1:53] for every
[1:54] municipality in the
[1:55] county. Uh, we just
[1:56] wanted to thank them with
[1:57] this proclamation.
[1:58] Because the Carroll County Community Media Center
[1:59] provides
[2:01] community members,
[2:02] nonprofits, schools,
[2:04] and government
[2:04] agencies with resources
[2:06] to create and
[2:07] distribute
[2:07] digital
[2:08] media content
[2:09] important to their
[2:10] local communities. And
[2:11] because the Community Media Center
[2:13] plays a
[2:14] vital role in
[2:15] citizen participation,
[2:15] providing
[2:16] coverage of
[2:17] municipal meetings
[2:18] , local elections, and
[2:19] community events.
[2:21] And because the Community Media
[2:22] Center celebrates our
[2:23] student-
[2:24] athletes
[2:25] with CM CMS Sports Net
[2:26] and live streaming of
[2:27] every game from every
[2:31] Carroll County Public High School stadium and gym. And
[2:32] because the Community Media Center
[2:34] works to
[2:34] preserve our
[2:35] local history,
[2:36] honor our
[2:37] local veterans,
[2:38] provide
[2:39] diverse
[2:40] communities with the means to
[2:41] tell their
[2:42] stories, and empower
[2:43] people
[2:44] to create content
[2:45] to inform,
[2:46] connect, and improve
[2:47] the quality of life in our
[2:48] region. Now, therefore, it
[2:50] is hereby decreed that
[2:52] October 20, 2026, be
[2:53] proclaimed
[2:54] Community Media Day in the
[2:56] City of Mount Airy. And
[2:58] all residents are
[2:58] encouraged
[2:59] to promote
[3:00] the importance of
[3:00] community media,
[3:02] services and training
[3:03] available at the
[3:05] Carroll County Community Media Center. As
[3:07] well as programs
[3:08] available on
[3:10] cable channels 18,
[3:12] 19, 23 and HD 1072, as well as
[3:14] online at carolmediacenter.org.
[3:17] Thank you very much.
[3:22] Well, it's definitely an honor for me to be
[3:24] here tonight.
[3:25] I want to thank
[3:26] the leadership here at
[3:27] Mount Airy. Mount
[3:28] Airy, as you've heard
[3:29] from me before, has
[3:30] really been at the
[3:31] forefront of
[3:31] implementing
[3:32] innovative
[3:33] ways to
[3:34] use
[3:34] technology and
[3:35] ensuring that
[3:36] community residents
[3:37] have the opportunity
[3:38] to see
[3:39] your government in action. We
[3:40] use this as the
[3:42] model we
[3:42] used. That's what
[3:43] allowed us to
[3:44] do the kind of
[3:45] coverage we
[3:46] do in sports, where we
[3:47] 're in every gym
[3:48] and on every field. These are
[3:49] cameras that can be
[3:50] controlled remotely
[3:52] . We have
[3:53] great teams at the facility. You
[3:54] don't see them. As
[3:56] a result, you
[3:57] only see camera movement. But it
[3:58] really matters in
[3:59] terms of our
[4:00] ability to increase
[4:01] the amount of coverage
[4:04] our residents can get.
[4:05] We also want to encourage
[4:06] residents
[4:07] to read our
[4:08] election guide.
[4:09] We provide a great
[4:10] opportunity for
[4:11] candidates
[4:12] running for
[4:13] elected office
[4:14] to come, or we go
[4:15] to them in the case of
[4:16] election forums,
[4:17] where we have the
[4:18] opportunity
[4:18] to share what
[4:19] our candidates
[4:20] running for
[4:21] elected office
[4:22] want to say to our
[4:23] residents. So this is a
[4:24] great opportunity
[4:25] for them
[4:26] to learn about it as well. So
[4:27] we appreciate that.
[4:29] Thank you very much.
[4:29] Yes, thank you very much.
[4:31] Of course. Oh,
[4:32] go on. Perfectly.
[4:42] Okay, thank you very much.
[5:00] Okay, but now
[5:00] let's move on to the part of
[5:01] our
[5:02] agenda dedicated to
[5:03] public
[5:03] discussion. Does anyone
[5:04] from the audience wish
[5:05] to speak? Yes, ma'am.
[5:06] Please come over
[5:08] . Of course. Please
[5:09] just provide your
[5:10] name and address for the
[5:11] record.
[5:12] Of course. My name is
[5:15] Jen McCoy. I live at
[5:18] 605 South Main Street. Way up the
[5:19] hill, of course.
[5:21] Good evening,
[5:22] council members and
[5:23] acting mayor.
[5:24] Thank you for
[5:25] the opportunity to speak
[5:26] to you this
[5:27] evening. My name is
[5:28] Jen McCoy. I've
[5:30] told you about it before, and I
[5:31] live on South Main
[5:32] Street, about
[5:33] halfway up the hill.
[5:34] My family moved into
[5:35] this house in April,
[5:36] but it's also
[5:37] my childhood home. I'm not
[5:38] used to using the
[5:40] loudspeaker. Hmm, which
[5:42] was also my
[5:43] childhood home.
[5:44] Hmm, I've lived in
[5:46] or
[5:47] around Mount Airy my whole
[5:48] life. So I guess I'm a
[5:49] real
[5:51] Mount Airy fan. I'm here
[5:52] because my neighbors and I
[5:53] witness
[5:54] constant
[5:55] speeding and
[5:56] aggressive driving on
[5:57] South Main Street every day. Hmm,
[5:59] every day, and we
[6:01] need your
[6:02] help. When I
[6:04] returned to this
[6:05] house, I was
[6:06] shocked by how
[6:07] fast the vehicles were moving
[6:09] in front of my house.
[6:11] I also began to
[6:12] notice the
[6:12] speed limit sign
[6:13] on Calvary, which
[6:14] showed
[6:15] cars regularly
[6:16] traveling
[6:17] between 40 and 55
[6:18] miles per hour. And you'll
[6:19] realize it's
[6:20] right before the
[6:20] crosswalk
[6:21] , right before you
[6:22] exit into our
[6:23] historic,
[6:24] beautiful
[6:25] downtown Mount Airy. Um,
[6:28] I realized I thought
[6:30] 20th Street was
[6:32] Route 27. Um, our
[6:33] town has probably fallen
[6:35] victim to Waze and
[6:37] Google Maps. In early
[6:40] May, I contacted the
[6:42] Mount Airy Police Department.
[6:44] They agreed that
[6:45] the road was dangerous,
[6:46] with no shoulders,
[6:47] limited visibility, and
[6:51] heavy traffic of both pedestrians and cars. These
[6:54] conditions make it
[6:55] dangerous for drivers to stop
[6:56] drivers. So they
[6:58] usually go further
[6:59] north and south,
[7:01] which I completely understand
[7:02] . I can barely cross
[7:04] the road to get
[7:05] the mail. In fact,
[7:07] most of my
[7:08] neighbors have
[7:09] mailboxes
[7:10] because they can't
[7:11] safely cross
[7:12] Main Street. In
[7:14] early May, um,
[7:15] when I asked
[7:16] a police officer what
[7:18] speed reduction measures
[7:20] the city was considering, I was told that since
[7:21] it was a state highway
[7:22] ,
[7:23] speed reduction measures
[7:24] would require
[7:25] state approval and
[7:26] willingness to implement them,
[7:28] depending on the budget.
[7:30] The city does not control
[7:31] public roads and does not
[7:33] have the authority
[7:34] to make any
[7:35] changes. I was advised
[7:36] to contact the
[7:38] Mount
[7:38] Airy Department of Transportation for
[7:39] more
[7:40] information. So I
[7:42] thought I would reach out
[7:43] to the mayor to
[7:44] see if
[7:45] perhaps the city already has
[7:46] some
[7:47] speed reduction measures in place
[7:48] that are requested by
[7:49] the state. He
[7:51] treated me with
[7:53] compassion. He
[7:54] said he would get back
[7:55] to me after talking
[7:56] to the boss because
[7:57] they do have some
[8:00] speed reduction measures they are
[8:01] trying to
[8:02] implement. But I was
[8:05] assured that in the meantime
[8:06] we had to
[8:07] do something. I was
[8:09] full of hope. A
[8:10] few weeks later I
[8:11] found out that he
[8:12] had resigned.
[8:14] So I decided
[8:15] to contact the
[8:16] state directly, as
[8:17] the police advised. I contacted
[8:22] MDOT. After several
[8:24] weeks of no response,
[8:25] I decided to reach out
[8:26] to the office of Justin
[8:28] Redding, the
[8:29] state senator, and also the
[8:30] governor's office. I
[8:32] shared what my
[8:33] neighbors and I had seen,
[8:34] and I also provided
[8:35] photos
[8:36] showing the hill on Main
[8:37] Street
[8:38] descending straight into the
[8:39] historic
[8:40] downtown area, and I provided them with
[8:41] several photos of
[8:42] cars traveling at least 45 mph as they
[8:45] passed the
[8:46] sign entering the
[8:47] city. Both offices
[8:50] were extremely
[8:51] helpful. And
[8:52] Senator Redding's office
[8:53] put me in touch with
[8:54] state officials
[8:55] who were eager to help.
[8:58] MDOT also informed
[8:59] me that rectangular
[9:00] speed flashing
[9:01] lights have already been
[9:02] approved at two
[9:04] locations, at the
[9:04] train station
[9:05] and on Hood Street
[9:06] , and are currently being
[9:08] developed. Although
[9:10] given the high
[9:11] speed of
[9:12] traffic, many
[9:13] drivers also
[9:14] use
[9:14] cell
[9:15] phones, I wasn't
[9:16] sure. I responded
[9:17] and said I wasn't
[9:18] sure if this would
[9:19] really solve our
[9:20] problem. They also
[9:22] stated that the existing
[9:23] beacon sign on Park
[9:25] Avenue would remain.
[9:26] Although I'm following this
[9:27] issue as it
[9:28] appears that this sign has been
[9:29] removed. This is important
[9:31] because a recent
[9:33] speeding study I
[9:34] read on Park
[9:35] Avenue showed that
[9:37] in just 2 weeks, 2,420
[9:38] vehicles
[9:39] were
[9:40] speeding. 340 of them
[9:42] exceeded 10 miles
[9:43] per hour. Eight
[9:45] drivers
[9:46] whose speed was considered
[9:46] aggressive or
[9:47] reckless were considered
[9:49] speeding.
[9:51] State Highway Department officials
[9:52] told me
[9:53] they are evaluating
[9:54] additional improvements
[9:55] to
[9:55] crosswalks and that speed cameras
[9:57] near the school would be
[9:58] approved if
[9:59] the city
[10:00] requests them. The state also
[10:01] agreed to conduct a 48-
[10:03] hour
[10:04] speed study on blind
[10:05] hills to better
[10:06] understand
[10:08] traffic volumes and speeds. From
[10:11] my conversation,
[10:12] it's clear that the state is
[10:13] ready to help.
[10:15] But many events
[10:16] require an official
[10:17] request from the city.
[10:18] I
[10:19] looked at the
[10:20] Mount Airy Police Department's
[10:21] traffic data last night.
[10:22] The number of
[10:24] speeding stops on North
[10:26] Main Street
[10:27] has already surpassed
[10:28] last year's
[10:29] tally, with a total of
[10:30] 78 in 2026,
[10:31] compared to 70 for all of
[10:33] 2025. The report
[10:34] notes that
[10:35] speeding is most
[10:36] prevalent on North Main
[10:37] Street, where the
[10:38] schools are located. Which is
[10:39] actually a bit
[10:41] alarming if
[10:42] you've been sitting outside
[10:43] my house on the porch for an hour
[10:44] . I appreciate your
[10:46] increased presence
[10:48] over the past few
[10:49] weeks. Really. But
[10:51] control alone
[10:52] cannot solve this
[10:53] problem. Just
[10:55] yesterday, around
[10:56] noon, I was coming down the
[10:57] hill. I
[10:58] stopped on the hill.
[10:59] I turned on the
[11:00] turn signal so my
[11:01] daughter could pull out of the
[11:02] driveway and I
[11:04] could pull in. The driver
[11:05] aggressively overtook
[11:07] me, almost hitting
[11:08] us both. Then he followed
[11:10] my daughter
[11:11] all over town. This is not an
[11:14] isolated incident.
[11:17] Delivery drivers
[11:18] tell me
[11:19] stories like this all the time,
[11:21] and I see it with my own
[11:22] eyes. We need
[11:28] speed reduction measures. And the state
[11:30] seems ready to
[11:31] support the city.
[11:33] As Route 27 becomes
[11:35] busier,
[11:36] this problem
[11:37] will only increase. I believe the
[11:40] city can take a
[11:41] few steps.
[11:42] Strategically
[11:43] place
[11:44] crosswalks with
[11:45] stop signs, similar to the one
[11:48] on Park Avenue and
[11:49] Marydale, on these
[11:50] known problem
[11:51] streets. The same
[11:52] design should be
[11:53] considered at Main
[11:54] Street and Flower Avenue
[11:55] , where a recent accident
[11:57] forced police
[11:58] to close the road. On
[12:01] Main Street and Sunset,
[12:02] where there
[12:04] are
[12:05] frequent accidents every day on the left turn because
[12:06] someone stops and
[12:07] someone goes down the
[12:08] hill at high
[12:09] speed. So,
[12:12] residents, um, this will also
[12:13] slow down
[12:14] traffic into the city.
[12:17] At Prospect Avenue and
[12:18] Hill Street, residents
[12:19] will be able to safely
[12:20] cross the road
[12:21] to reach the
[12:22] new Rails and Trails track
[12:23] from downtown. I don't
[12:25] know if anyone has ever
[12:26] done this. If you were walking
[12:27] on Prospect Avenue,
[12:28] you need to walk on the
[12:29] right side of
[12:30] the road, you will come to a
[12:31] point where you
[12:32] need to cross
[12:33] the road to get
[12:34] to the railroad tracks. Good
[12:36] luck. There's no way you
[12:38] can
[12:39] do this if you don't
[12:40] know how to run, because
[12:41] it's unsettling. Park
[12:43] Avenue and Wildwood
[12:44] Park, where a recent
[12:46] speed study shows
[12:47] high
[12:48] traffic volume and
[12:49] speeding. Speed ​​camera
[12:52] in front of an elementary
[12:53] school. The state has already
[12:55] said it will approve
[12:56] it. Reducing the
[12:58] speed limit
[12:59] on Main Street to 25
[13:00] miles per hour. We
[13:03] are at a
[13:04] turning point in the
[13:05] history of our city.
[13:07] Either Main Street becomes a
[13:08] bypass for
[13:10] Route 27, or we can
[13:11] take steps to
[13:12] make Mount Airy a pedestrian-
[13:13] safe
[13:14] community
[13:16] where
[13:17] small businesses can thrive. I am asking
[13:19] the city council to
[13:20] help solve
[13:21] this ongoing
[13:22] safety problem. Support the
[13:24] city's cooperation with
[13:25] government
[13:26] agencies that are
[13:27] ready to help. And to
[13:28] the residents who
[13:30] live there, I respectfully
[13:31] ask you to outline
[13:32] your plan for solving
[13:33] this serious
[13:34] problem. Because it's
[13:36] not me. It's not just the
[13:37] people who live on
[13:38] this street. This is, if
[13:39] you read social
[13:41] media, if you
[13:41] talk to
[13:42] residents, if you
[13:43] talk to
[13:44] your neighbors, everyone is
[13:45] concerned. I can
[13:46] assure you that,
[13:48] speaking with
[13:48] neighbors, this is one of the
[13:50] main issues that
[13:51] concern residents
[13:52] living within the
[13:53] city limits. Thank you for your
[13:56] time tonight.
[13:57] Thank you. Does anyone else in
[14:04] the audience wish to
[14:04] speak for
[14:05] public
[14:06] discussion? Okay,
[14:10] thank you. We are moving
[14:11] on. We have
[14:13] no speakers today.
[14:14] Next, we will have
[14:15] approval
[14:15] of the minutes of the
[14:16] council meetings and closed
[14:17] minutes. Uh,
[14:18] first we have the
[14:18] minutes of the
[14:19] city council meeting for
[14:20] September 2026. Uh, do
[14:21] we have a suggestion?
[14:22] I will make a motion
[14:23] for approval. Do
[14:24] we have a friend?
[14:25] I will support.
[14:26] Good. Uh, is there any
[14:28] discussion?
[14:29] Yes, I would like to, uh,
[14:30] ask, I would like to
[14:32] make a suggestion
[14:33] to add, uh, a
[14:35] note. Uh, item 10,
[14:38] resolutions and decisions,
[14:43] be specific
[14:45] here. Uh, I would say that
[14:47] according to city
[14:48] code, the council president
[14:49] and
[14:50] acting mayor
[14:51] Washiba did not vote
[14:52] for any ordinance.
[15:02] Got it, Holly?
[15:08] We mention this at
[15:09] number four. Did you
[15:10] also mean
[15:12] number 10?
[15:13] This was my
[15:14] preference, just "
[15:15] completely in favor".
[15:16] Good.
[15:17] Just to be
[15:18] extremely precise.
[15:21] I agree with that, Ed. With
[15:24] this With this, Mr.
[15:25] Councilor. So, I think
[15:32] I'll amend the
[15:34] motion to
[15:35] accept, Tom.
[15:37] Amend the
[15:38] motion to
[15:39] accept, uh,
[15:40] clarification from, uh,
[15:42] Councilmember Kelly.
[15:49] Can I support you? I
[15:51] will support.
[15:52] Oh, yes. Yes.
[15:59] Okay, everything's fine.
[16:01] Yes.
[16:01] Okay, so everyone who
[16:02] supports
[16:03] approving the
[16:04] Council meeting minutes as
[16:05] amended, please
[16:06] confirm by
[16:07] saying "yes."
[16:08] Yes.
[16:08] Closed. Okay, thank you.
[16:12] Next, we have the minutes of the
[16:13] closed meeting
[16:14] for September 2026
[16:16] regarding, uh, the loan and the
[16:17] lawsuit. Do we have
[16:18] an offer?
[16:20] Submit a proposal
[16:21] for approval. Do
[16:23] you have a suggestion?
[16:25] I will support.
[16:26] Okay, is there any
[16:27] discussion on this
[16:28] ? I don't hear
[16:28] any, everyone who
[16:29] supports
[16:30] approving the
[16:32] September 2026 closed meeting minutes regarding the
[16:33] , uh, loan and lawsuit
[16:34] , please
[16:35] affirm by
[16:35] saying "yes."
[16:36] Yes.
[16:36] Closed. Okay, thank you.
[16:39] Okay, now we have a
[16:40] report from our
[16:42] Mount Airy Volunteer Fire Company. I see
[16:43] Hall of
[16:45] Famer Matt Gerd in the audience.
[16:46] Welcome
[16:47] back, sir.
[16:48] Thank you. Thank you. Good
[16:50] evening everyone. Uh,
[16:53] 234 calls for
[16:55] help in September. 189 in
[16:57] Carroll, 33 in
[16:58] Frederick, eight in
[17:00] Howard and four in
[17:01] Montgomery. We
[17:03] had 182
[17:04] ambulance calls,
[17:05] six
[17:06] fire calls, and then another 46.
[17:08] So that's, um, a lot of
[17:09] non-medical calls,
[17:10] canceled responses
[17:12] , citizen assistance
[17:13] , false alarms,
[17:14] good intentions. So
[17:16] we've
[17:17] been a little busy this past month,
[17:18] but, um,
[17:19] anyway,
[17:20] we're having
[17:21] our 100th
[17:22] anniversary gathering at the carnival grounds on November 7th
[17:23] .
[17:24] It will start at 10:00 and
[17:25] end at 14:00.
[17:27] Come over and
[17:28] see if
[17:28] I have any different
[17:29] equipment. All of our
[17:30] equipment will be there,
[17:31] as will our first piece of
[17:32] equipment, engine
[17:33] number one. And then
[17:34] other neighboring
[17:35] companies and other people
[17:36] will bring their,
[17:37] ahem, old fire
[17:38] engines there to
[17:39] show off. So
[17:40] come and
[17:40] look at us. This is
[17:41] open to the public.
[17:43] Are there
[17:43] any questions?
[17:44] Um, just a quick
[17:45] question. It sounds like you
[17:46] were able to handle the
[17:47] challenges with the
[17:48] staff
[17:49] you have, or you were just
[17:50] able to...
[17:50] Absolutely. Yeah, I
[17:51] mean, it's nice that
[17:52] we have
[17:53] mutual aid if
[17:54] we need
[17:54] help, you know. It
[17:55] always seems like
[17:56] sometimes when we have
[17:59] four medical
[17:59] calls coming in at the same time, it's always like
[18:01] that. Uh, sometimes, but
[18:02] we have, you know, other
[18:03] neighboring counties that
[18:04] come and
[18:05] help us. So that's
[18:06] good.
[18:07] Steeply. Thank you.
[18:08] Yes, indeed.
[18:09] Okay, thank you.
[18:11] Next we will have a report from the
[18:13] Mount Airy Police Department with
[18:14] Chief Geneva.
[18:17] Good evening, Mayor, er
[18:19] , interim mayor,
[18:20] Mr. Washburn, members of the
[18:21] city council, and the
[18:22] community of Mount Airy.
[18:26] Service calls, 772
[18:28] service calls for
[18:30] September 2026.
[18:31] An increase of 40.36
[18:33] compared to September
[18:34] 2025 when it was 550.
[18:36] Again, just
[18:37] a reminder that those
[18:39] who participated were
[18:41] self-
[18:42] challenged, uh. As for
[18:44] the officers, uh, who
[18:45] were in sight. Regarding
[18:46] fines – 56.
[18:47] Warnings–189.
[18:48] Repair orders –
[18:49] 18. Arrests for
[18:52] drunk driving –
[18:53] two. Five arrests for
[18:55] traffic violations
[18:55] . The total
[18:57] number of
[18:58] transport stops is 129. Of these
[19:00] 129 traffic stops
[19:02] , I know I said
[19:04] 56 fines, that's
[19:06] 43.4 more than 129
[19:08] traffic stops.
[19:10] Regarding criminal arrests
[19:11] , we
[19:13] had 10. Regarding
[19:14] recruitment, we have
[19:15] one candidate
[19:16] awaiting recertification
[19:17] . One candidate
[19:18] is being interviewed
[19:19] for the position of
[19:20] academy officer, this is ongoing. And
[19:22] two candidates
[19:23] applied for the academy's initial
[19:24] officer position
[19:25] . Regarding Ms.
[19:28] McCoy, Ms. McCoy, I
[19:29] know I received
[19:30] follow-up
[19:31] communications
[19:32] dating back to August
[19:33] regarding your
[19:34] concerns about
[19:35] Main Street. At
[19:38] last year's
[19:38] September
[19:40] City Council meeting, I
[19:41] addressed
[19:42] a memorandum to the City Council
[19:43] regarding your
[19:43] concerns along with
[19:45] other
[19:45] City Council members on
[19:46] Main Street. The
[19:48] Mount
[19:49] Airy Police Department recommends
[19:50] the following to
[19:51] coordinate
[19:52] your
[19:54] Main Street problem
[19:55] with others. This
[19:58] will be targeted
[19:59] enforcement,
[20:00] periodic enforcement
[20:01] of increased
[20:02] visibility, uh, will
[20:03] focus on
[20:05] speeding,
[20:06] aggressive or
[20:07] reckless driving
[20:08] , failure to follow
[20:09] traffic rules,
[20:10] inattentive driving,
[20:11] failure to yield to
[20:12] pedestrians, and other
[20:14] violations that
[20:14] contribute to safety on
[20:16] Main Street.
[20:18] Also, regarding the collection of
[20:19] speed data,
[20:21] I also contacted the
[20:22] State Road
[20:23] Service. I'm still
[20:24] waiting for
[20:25] some of this data to be verified.
[20:27] Again, you are
[20:28] correct, they should have
[20:29] done a 24-48 hour
[20:31] study in the
[20:32] Main
[20:33] Street corridor. Radar
[20:35] display of
[20:36] speeds, which ones
[20:37] are permanently
[20:38] there and which ones can be
[20:39] moved,
[20:40] directional
[20:41] control details and high
[20:42] visibility of
[20:43] police presence.
[20:45] In our report,
[20:46] Sergeant Brooks provided
[20:47] some data on accidents
[20:49] on North and
[20:50] South Main
[20:51] Streets and
[20:52] traffic, which I know
[20:53] Councilman DeMott
[20:54] requested some
[20:55] information on. Again
[20:56] , this is on the
[20:57] agenda for
[20:59] tonight for my
[21:00] reading. And that
[21:01] includes crashes from
[21:02] 2025 to 2026 that
[21:03] involved North and
[21:05] South Main Street,
[21:06] non-
[21:07] reportable,
[21:09] code 89 crashes, and
[21:10] information sharing, traffic stop data
[21:14] including tickets,
[21:15] warnings and CRVs,
[21:16] which are
[21:18] safety repair orders, as well as
[21:21] speeding misdemeanors. And again
[21:22] , I'm waiting for the data
[21:24] collection from the State
[21:25] Highway Patrol.
[21:26] As of today, I have
[21:27] not received any of
[21:28] this data. I
[21:30] will continue to
[21:31] gather information
[21:32] with Sergeant
[21:33] Brooks and the
[21:33] Deputy
[21:34] Chief to
[21:35] address all
[21:36] issues, not just the
[21:37] Main
[21:38] Street corridor, which is always a
[21:39] top priority
[21:41] when we conduct
[21:42] our monthly
[21:43] initiatives. This also
[21:44] includes
[21:46] any other complaints
[21:47] we receive for the
[21:48] city. So I
[21:49] will continue to
[21:50] receive this
[21:51] updated information as well.
[21:53] I have nothing more
[21:54] to add, sir.
[21:55] Good. Um, how
[21:57] can we coordinate
[21:58] with the streets,
[21:59] roads, and
[22:00] city staff, as well as the Department of
[22:03] Defense Police Department, and let's
[22:04] get in touch with the state.
[22:06] If they are willing
[22:07] to help and there is something
[22:08] we can do.
[22:09] Chairman of the Council,
[22:10] one minute.
[22:12] Yes.
[22:12] Come on, Jared, what do
[22:13] you think about this
[22:14] ?
[22:16] Yes. Can I steal this
[22:17] ? Uh, yeah, I definitely
[22:19] think we can
[22:20] do some
[22:21] coordination. I know,
[22:22] um, some council members have
[22:24] already reached out to MDOT,
[22:26] um, and SHA on this
[22:27] issue, and I think there's a
[22:29] potential plan,
[22:30] um, from them. But I
[22:32] think we
[22:33] should also get more,
[22:34] ahem, internal
[22:35] coordination from
[22:36] our streets and roads,
[22:37] staff, and
[22:38] meetings with the police.
[22:39] So I can
[22:40] coordinate this at
[22:41] our level.
[22:42] Good.
[22:43] Yes.
[22:43] Good, because I know Karl
[22:44] , of course, with the streets
[22:45] and roads. I know
[22:46] that Councilman Demott was
[22:48] also invited
[22:49] through Mdot. Uh, those are two
[22:50] separate things. I
[22:51] mean, the
[22:52] Streets and Roads Department
[22:53] will be dealing with the city
[22:54] , while Councilman
[22:55] Demott will be dealing more with
[22:57] state matters. But if we
[22:58] can go through the
[22:59] Department of Streets and Highways
[23:00] , which is usually the
[23:01] quickest way, I
[23:02] think, to get
[23:04] things done, as far as that's
[23:05] concerned. And then
[23:08] coordinate with the
[23:09] state.
[23:09] Yes.
[23:10] Whatever they can, whatever
[23:11] they think is
[23:12] right. Maybe
[23:14] we can do it
[23:15] sooner rather than later.
[23:17] Yes, Rado. Yes, I
[23:20] sent an
[23:20] email and
[23:21] that I was going to bring to
[23:23] the attention of the lady and her
[23:24] family during my
[23:25] report that they are
[23:26] looking into some
[23:27] things. I
[23:29] requested a few
[23:31] things that you did.
[23:32] It just, you know,
[23:33] takes a little bit of time,
[23:34] but I can...I'll say it
[23:35] during my report, what
[23:37] they're willing to do,
[23:38] proposals and other
[23:39] things of that
[23:40] nature. So, it's
[23:41] like they agreed to
[23:43] do something or
[23:43] consider it. And
[23:47] just if you
[23:48] could leave
[23:51] your listed
[23:52] suggestions and such in my mailbox for the Council. I
[23:54] tried to write
[23:55] them down while you were talking
[23:58] about it, but you went
[23:59] too fast. So
[24:00] thank you.
[24:01] No problem.
[24:02] Yes. Yes, we
[24:02] will look into it and
[24:03] try to do
[24:04] as much as
[24:05] possible.
[24:07] Okay, thank you. No, it
[24:08] looks like you've already
[24:09] done that, but we'd be
[24:10] happy
[24:11] to help. Thank you.
[24:13] Mr.
[24:13] Councilor.
[24:15] Yes, I'm going to
[24:16] talk about this
[24:17] during my report, but
[24:18] again, there's a
[24:19] high-
[24:21] level initiative called the
[24:22] Coalition for a
[24:22] Safer Maryland
[24:24] , and I was invited to
[24:25] participate in that
[24:26] initiative. This is a
[24:28] very
[24:29] high-level initiative with the vice
[24:30] governor. So I'm
[24:34] going to talk
[24:35] more about that, and also
[24:36] about the importance and
[24:37] necessity of
[24:38] coordination within the
[24:40] city; and then,
[24:40] hopefully, as
[24:42] part of this
[24:43] high-
[24:44] level initiative, I can bring a
[24:45] prioritized list of
[24:47] issues and needs to
[24:48] the office of the governor and the
[24:49] secretary of the
[24:50] Maryland Department of Transportation
[24:52] , with whom I work on
[24:53] this coalition. I'll
[24:56] talk more about that
[24:57] later.
[24:59] Okay, thank you. And then,
[25:01] if possible, just
[25:02] send me a copy,
[25:03] you know, of
[25:04] the information that
[25:05] comes with it.
[25:06] Yes.
[25:06] So if we can
[25:07] speed it up, we will
[25:09] . And if
[25:10] possible, any
[25:10] information about
[25:11] any communication with MDOT
[25:13] where they expressed
[25:14] their willingness
[25:14] to help, please
[25:16] forward it to us.
[25:17] Yes.
[25:17] Hmm, make sure
[25:18] Jerry can get
[25:19] your
[25:20] email, as well as mine and the
[25:21] board's email, and that way we
[25:22] can just
[25:23] reconcile all this
[25:24] information. So if
[25:25] they tell us
[25:25] something different than what they
[25:26] told her, I just
[25:27] want to make sure
[25:28] we have everything
[25:29] on record and then
[25:30] we can reach out
[25:30] to them. Uh, thank you.
[25:32] Okay, thank you very much,
[25:33] boss.
[25:34] Chairman, do you have
[25:35] a few questions about the
[25:36] data he
[25:36] presented?
[25:37] Can we ask
[25:38] ? Yes, yes, of course.
[25:39] Good. So,
[25:40] boss, thank you.
[25:41] In particular, regarding
[25:44] accident data and
[25:47] speeding stop data, it's great.
[25:48] Hmm, I've been looking for this kind of data
[25:50] since 2021, and you've
[25:51] provided some of it
[25:53] sporadically, but I'm
[25:54] glad to see it. I
[25:56] want to encourage you to
[25:57] continue
[25:58] doing this. I have a
[26:00] few quick
[26:01] questions. So, um, on the
[26:04] second page
[26:05] of your data, there's a
[26:06] distribution of
[26:08] speeding along 25th and 26th
[26:09] Streets on North Main
[26:10] compared to
[26:11] South Main. Do
[26:15] you have data
[26:16] showing the
[26:17] speed limit at which
[26:18] these vehicles were stopped
[26:19] ? In
[26:22] other words,
[26:23] for example, 2025 North
[26:25] Main Street, 70 stops.
[26:27] Were they stopped in
[26:28] zones with a
[26:30] 25 mph
[26:31] or 30 mph speed limit?
[26:32] That, sir, I
[26:33] don't have before my eyes, and
[26:34] again, I would
[26:35] coordinate it with
[26:36] Sergeant Brooks
[26:37] to get that
[26:38] information. It will take
[26:39] a little
[26:40] more digging into the
[26:41] details to
[26:42] try to
[26:42] pull this out. Hmm, when you
[26:44] look for the distribution, there are
[26:45] no exact
[26:46] velocities. You will
[26:47] have to search for
[26:48] each officer
[26:49] individually, each day
[26:50] separately for a year.
[26:51] Good. Would you be, uh
[26:52] , willing to at least,
[26:54] since you're
[26:54] going to
[26:55] continue to
[26:56] do this, if I have
[26:57] any specific
[26:58] requests for data, can
[27:00] I at least
[27:01] ask you about it, and
[27:02] then you can
[27:03] decide whether it's
[27:04] too time-consuming
[27:05] or not, or maybe it's
[27:06] not valuable, but I
[27:08] want to at least ask,
[27:09] okay? Secondly, I
[27:11] would like to get
[27:12] feedback on your
[27:13] comment regarding
[27:15] accident data. Uh,
[27:18] about 2 years ago I
[27:20] requested a
[27:21] study of crashes
[27:22] just in the city center and
[27:23] you, Sergeant Brooks, did a
[27:24] really good
[27:25] job of
[27:26] pulling out all the
[27:27] crash data and
[27:28] most of it
[27:29] boils down to
[27:30] mirror slaps and
[27:31] such. But the conclusion in the
[27:36] report you provided
[27:37] says, and I quote, that
[27:38] there is a significant
[27:39] safety problem
[27:40] due to the narrowness of
[27:44] the road and the
[27:45] parking situation in the
[27:46] city center. And that's something
[27:48] I think we'll have to
[27:49] continue to think about
[27:50] in the future. So
[27:51] thank you.
[27:52] Yes, sir.
[27:54] Something else? Okay, without
[27:57] hearing anything, we'll
[27:58] move on to the reports from the
[27:59] mayor's council and
[28:00] staff. A brief
[28:01] report from the mayor. The participant in the
[28:05] department heads meeting on the 17th
[28:06] was very
[28:06] informative. I was
[28:08] here for a few hours,
[28:09] learned a lot.
[28:10] Just trying to get
[28:11] my bearings to
[28:12] make sure everything
[28:13] stays afloat
[28:15] until the
[28:16] next elected
[28:17] mayor comes along and, thankfully,
[28:18] takes it from me. So,
[28:20] you know, I'm just
[28:21] hanging in here as best I can
[28:22] until then.
[28:24] We have had
[28:25] some great
[28:26] events over the past month, including the
[28:28] Rotary Club Duck Race. I know
[28:29] they went through it without a hitch
[28:30] .
[28:31] I hope they
[28:32] raised a lot of
[28:33] money. And this is a wonderful
[28:34] event that, in my
[28:35] opinion, brings
[28:35] a lot of people together.
[28:36] Councilman Evans, I know
[28:38] you were present, I
[28:38] think. I
[28:40] was actually unwell after
[28:41] spending the whole day in the rain the day
[28:42] before
[28:43] training, so I
[28:44] couldn't get there.
[28:45] But, um, and then, Mamso
[28:46] , it's Oktoberfest. I
[28:47] want to thank everyone
[28:49] who had any
[28:49] connection to this
[28:51] event. Uh, boss, to
[28:52] your entire team, um,
[28:53] Mamso volunteers,
[28:54] Jared,
[28:55] city staff
[28:56] . Uh, talked to
[28:57] a lot of people. I
[28:58] think everyone had a great
[28:59] time. Everything
[29:00] went smoothly
[29:01] , and, uh, you know,
[29:02] it's one of the best
[29:03] events, in my opinion,
[29:04] in the city of Mount Airy.
[29:05] So I want to
[29:06] thank everyone for that. And
[29:07] then, uh, that's
[29:08] pretty much the end of my
[29:08] report, if you don't have
[29:09] anything special. I
[29:10] feel like you're
[29:11] more of an acting
[29:12] mayor than I am right now.
[29:13] So,
[29:13] uh, we appreciate you
[29:14] coming to the, uh
[29:15] , staff meeting.
[29:17] You see, you know, it's...it's
[29:18] in ten minutes,
[29:19] you know, we're there for a
[29:20] while discussing everything
[29:21] that's going on. So
[29:22] we are grateful to you. Uh, I'd
[29:23] like to
[29:25] thank Grace, who
[29:26] was a big, uh,
[29:27] part of the city, uh,
[29:28] kind of liaison
[29:30] for the Mamsas event
[29:31] . So, uh, a big
[29:32] thank you to her for that. She did a
[29:34] great job.
[29:35] Yes, and still recovering, I
[29:37] know. So it was a
[29:38] long day and a great
[29:39] event.
[29:39] You recover until
[29:40] next year.
[29:41] Yes. We will start
[29:43] planning this
[29:43] next week. Uh,
[29:46] we'll move on to, uh, the
[29:48] Water and
[29:49] Sewer Commission, the
[29:50] Improvement Commission, the
[29:52] Severe
[29:54] Weather Task Force, the 250th
[29:55] Fifty Committee, and the Coalition
[29:56] for a Safer
[29:57] Maryland with Councilman
[29:59] Demmitt.
[30:00] Okay, thank you. Uh,
[30:01] first the
[30:03] Improvement Commission. Uh,
[30:04] the commission didn't meet
[30:06] in September, and the next
[30:08] commission meeting
[30:09] will be on October 20th
[30:11] at 7:00 p.m. I want to
[30:11] emphasize, both I and I
[30:13] asked the
[30:13] acting
[30:14] mayor and the
[30:15] council president to put this
[30:16] issue on the
[30:17] agenda, and I'm glad
[30:18] we did. I want to
[30:19] reach out to
[30:20] the Coalition for a
[30:21] Safer Maryland
[30:22] . So, the Coalition for a
[30:24] Safer Maryland
[30:25] is a very
[30:26] high-level initiative
[30:27] led by the Lieutenant
[30:28] Governor and the
[30:29] Secretary of the
[30:31] Maryland Department of Transportation
[30:32] . The goal is to
[30:34] reduce
[30:36] traffic fatalities and
[30:36] move Maryland
[30:37] toward zero
[30:38] traffic fatalities.
[30:40] So the focus is on
[30:41] what
[30:43] else we can do
[30:44] across the state to
[30:45] reduce
[30:47] traffic fatalities,
[30:48] pedestrian fatalities, and so on. Hmm, I'm
[30:51] very grateful. I am very
[30:53] grateful to have been
[30:54] invited to
[30:55] participate in this
[30:56] high-
[30:57] level initiative. It was by
[30:59] invitation only, and not
[31:00] every city was
[31:01] invited. Only
[31:03] about 12
[31:04] municipalities
[31:05] participate by
[31:06] invitation, and I was
[31:07] invited to
[31:08] participate. So it's a
[31:11] great honor for me to be in the
[31:12] coalition. Hmm, we
[31:15] had a kick-off
[31:16] meeting on September 1st. Hmm,
[31:19] as soon as I was invited,
[31:21] I coordinated with the
[31:22] mayor. Hmm, and I
[31:23] coordinated every
[31:25] step. I reached out to the
[31:27] Minneapolis Police Department to
[31:28] get information from them
[31:29] . Hmm, I
[31:33] talked about this at the
[31:35] Streets and
[31:36] Highways Commission meeting last week,
[31:38] and part of what I asked was to
[31:39] ask the
[31:41] Streets and Highways Commission for their
[31:42] list of ongoing
[31:43] issues and points of
[31:44] coordination with the
[31:45] state and others,
[31:46] because I think
[31:47] part of it is
[31:48] because there are a
[31:49] lot of people
[31:50] talking to
[31:51] a lot of
[31:52] different people, and it's
[31:53] not all coordinated.
[31:57] So, within the framework of this
[31:58] coalition
[31:59] activity,
[32:00] two
[32:01] things are happening. This is an opportunity
[32:03] for me to
[32:04] collaborate with the
[32:05] other 12
[32:05] municipalities to
[32:06] develop
[32:07] statewide
[32:08] solutions for Vision
[32:09] Zero. It is also an
[32:13] opportunity to obtain
[32:14] and implement
[32:15] solutions adapted
[32:17] to the needs of each
[32:18] community. So this is a
[32:22] great opportunity
[32:23] for us
[32:29] to discuss our
[32:30] problems at a very high level and solve
[32:31] some of them.
[32:33] For example, after the
[32:34] kick-off meeting on
[32:36] September 1, I was very
[32:38] straightforward. I
[32:39] said, “I’m happy
[32:40] to help with this
[32:41] statewide
[32:42] initiative, but I
[32:43] need help
[32:44] from the state. "That's what I
[32:46] need." And 3
[32:49] days later I
[32:50] got a call from Mdot in
[32:51] Frederick's 7th District
[32:53] and we discussed some
[32:54] of the issues. Two things
[33:00] I informed them about
[33:00] from scratch, I
[33:02] first agreed with
[33:03] the police, first, is
[33:05] our long-standing desire
[33:06] to reduce the
[33:07] speed limit to 25 on
[33:08] Main Street. And my
[33:13] comment to them was: "
[33:14] If not now, then when
[33:15] ?" So I got a
[33:18] commitment from them.
[33:19] They are going to
[33:20] conduct a
[33:21] speed study. They
[33:22] look at these
[33:23] issues a little differently
[33:25] than in the past. It's not
[33:28] just a matter of
[33:29] quantifying
[33:30] speed, but also other
[33:31] factors such as
[33:33] changes in the community, etc.
[33:36] Another issue was the
[33:38] rapid flashing
[33:39] beacons, which we had
[33:40] been requesting for
[33:41] about 2 years to be installed in
[33:42] our downtown
[33:43] area. So this is just the
[33:44] beginning. But my goal
[33:50] in this is to be
[33:51] able to
[33:52] reach out to this
[33:53] coalition and convey
[33:54] the needs and issues
[33:56] that I see in our
[33:57] city as an elected
[33:58] official and do
[33:59] everything I can to
[34:00] address them. So I think this is a
[34:04] great
[34:05] opportunity. I want to
[34:08] coordinate with the
[34:09] city
[34:09] administration,
[34:10] continue to
[34:11] coordinate with the
[34:12] police chief,
[34:14] coordinate with the
[34:15] mayor, because I think
[34:16] we need a
[34:17] single center of
[34:18] coordination that
[34:19] I can then bring
[34:20] to us this
[34:22] high-level opportunity. So,
[34:26] this is updated
[34:26] information on this
[34:28] matter. I would like to
[34:30] take the time to do this.
[34:33] Okay,
[34:34] water and
[34:35] sewer commission, I'll be
[34:36] brief
[34:37] on this. We last
[34:39] met on
[34:40] September 2nd. We
[34:41] will meet again on October 7th
[34:43] . We continue to, um,
[34:46] look at the issue of
[34:48] water distribution and use.
[34:53] For example, to what extent
[34:54] should
[34:55] previously approved
[34:56] equivalent housing
[34:57] units be taken into account when
[34:58] considering a
[34:59] development or
[35:00] renovation project that
[35:01] constitutes a change in the
[35:02] character of the property.
[35:07] We also consider
[35:08] lessons learned as
[35:09] a result of the
[35:12] city's actual water consumption
[35:12] exceeding
[35:13] the estimated and
[35:14] approved
[35:15] water consumption. And we are
[35:17] looking at lessons
[35:19] learned in another
[35:20] municipality that is
[35:21] adopting an ordinance on
[35:22] this issue. Severe Weather Working
[35:25] Group
[35:27] . Uh, we last
[35:29] met on August 27th to
[35:30] discuss and come to a
[35:32] formal
[35:32] recommendation on the
[35:34] desired weather
[35:35] alert siren system to
[35:37] purchase. Uh
[35:39] , sure, at the
[35:40] September
[35:41] meeting, the council
[35:42] approved the purchase of an
[35:45] American Signal weather alert siren system. I
[35:47] want to inform you that
[35:48] the city has issued a
[35:50] purchase order.
[35:51] The supplier mentioned
[35:53] that the lead time for
[35:55] equipment delivery is
[35:56] 12 to 16 weeks.
[35:57] Therefore, installation
[35:58] may only take place
[36:00] in early, um, 2027
[36:01] ,
[36:03] weather permitting. So this is a little
[36:04] different than what
[36:05] you heard from the
[36:06] city engineer. I
[36:07] think the estimate was
[36:09] the end of December. This
[36:10] won't happen until the end of
[36:11] December. I also want to
[36:14] thank
[36:15] Mr. Josh Marks again for his
[36:16] efforts. Josh raised,
[36:19] um, a lot of money, um,
[36:20] from private
[36:21] businesses to go towards a
[36:24] weather warning siren system. I also want
[36:28] to let you know that
[36:29] he has raised another
[36:30] thousand dollars since September. This
[36:34] brings the total
[36:36] contributions to
[36:37] $21,500, which will
[36:39] come from
[36:43] any funding
[36:45] the city has to provide.
[36:47] We will meet again on
[36:49] October 8th to
[36:50] discuss next
[36:51] steps in
[36:52] system implementation, education, and
[36:53] outreach
[36:55] . Uh,
[36:58] America 250 Task Force, the
[37:02] America
[37:03] 250 celebration is coming to an end
[37:04] as we
[37:05] move into
[37:06] late fall and the
[37:07] holiday season here.
[37:08] I remind you that you need to
[37:10] click on the
[37:11] "America 250" logo on the
[37:12] city's website to
[37:13] see upcoming
[37:14] events. Uh, I'm also
[37:17] working with Ashley Collier
[37:19] from the city staff,
[37:21] um, on the whole
[37:21] America 250 program
[37:23] , and specifically the
[37:25] Time Capsule event. I think it
[37:28] was very well
[37:29] done, and I think
[37:30] Ashley played a
[37:31] leading role in it,
[37:32] along with many
[37:33] other
[37:35] city staff. So, again
[37:36] , coordinating
[37:37] through the mayor, I wanted to
[37:38] recognize the
[37:39] city's employees
[37:40] . And so I'm working with
[37:44] them to put together an
[37:45] application for the
[37:50] Maryland Municipal League's Municipal Achievement Awards program. So, this is a
[37:54] program that you
[37:55] can apply for to have
[37:57] your, um, efforts
[37:58] recognized by MML. And we're
[38:01] going to file this
[38:02] under the
[38:03] community engagement category. I
[38:05] think it's good
[38:06] to recognize our
[38:07] city employees
[38:08] when they do a
[38:09] good job, and it's
[38:10] good visibility for the
[38:11] city. And I think those are
[38:15] all my areas, and I
[38:16] thank you for your time.
[38:19] Okay, next we have
[38:20] our planning commission report
[38:21] with
[38:22] Councilor Kelly.
[38:24] Thank you, council chairman and
[38:25] mayor. Uh, let's
[38:27] see, the
[38:28] Planning Commission met on
[38:29] September 29th. Uh, a few
[38:31] points. Uh, during the
[38:32] public discussion portion of
[38:33] the meeting, Chairman
[38:34] Gant echoed
[38:34] Councilor
[38:35] DeMotor's comments that
[38:36] we should collectively
[38:37] review the
[38:38] implementation strategies
[38:39] detailed in the
[38:40] 2023 Master Plan. Noting
[38:42] that we will owe the
[38:43] state updated
[38:44] information in 2028,
[38:45] which is
[38:45] coming soon. The commission
[38:47] requests that the council
[38:48] set a date for a
[38:49] workshop and/or
[38:50] convene a meeting of
[38:51] members of all commissions
[38:52] to update the
[38:53] implementation strategy. I'll
[38:56] come back to that in a
[38:57] minute.
[38:59] The commission also expressed
[39:00] our desire that
[39:01] the police station
[39:02] go through the normal
[39:04] site planning process when the
[39:05] time comes. I told them that I would
[39:06] forward this request
[39:07] with my full
[39:08] support and agreement.
[39:10] After further
[39:11] discussion, the
[39:12] final
[39:13] site plan was re
[39:15] -approved for the
[39:16] Twin Arts Business Park Lot 15C for
[39:18] King Sports Construction.
[39:21] Resolution
[39:23] 2026-25 regarding accessory
[39:25] living spaces was also introduced and discussed. And
[39:27] there were further
[39:28] discussions regarding
[39:29] recommendations for
[39:30] amendments to the
[39:31] city's
[39:32] signage code. The next
[39:34] Planning Commission meeting will
[39:35] be held on October 26th
[39:37] at 7:00 p.m. Uh,
[39:39] going back to my
[39:40] first point, so I'm
[39:42] like, um, and this is in
[39:43] my notes, uh,
[39:44] a few months ago,
[39:46] uh, regarding the desire, uh,
[39:48] and obviously this has
[39:49] happened in
[39:50] the past, uh, for, uh,
[39:51] members of all the commissions,
[39:53] uh, to get together with the
[39:54] city, staff. Uh, really,
[39:58] to discuss uh
[39:59] initiatives in the
[40:00] master plan, uh
[40:01] , gather updates,
[40:02] agree on strategies. Uh
[40:04] , something like that. So, I
[40:07] think my
[40:08] request here is, uh, from the
[40:10] mayor, uh, city
[40:11] administration, uh, and
[40:12] I would imagine that the
[40:13] next mayor, uh,
[40:15] would start planning uh
[40:16] this joint meeting/
[40:17] workshop for the first
[40:19] quarter, early
[40:20] second quarter, no
[40:21] later. I think the
[40:26] planning commission, in
[40:27] particular,
[40:29] has expressed several times that it's
[40:30] time to do this
[40:31] , and it's been a long time
[40:32] , probably someone in
[40:34] the room might have known that,
[40:35] but it's been a long
[40:36] time since it
[40:37] actually happened.
[40:41] So, I'm asking for this
[40:42] now, and I'm also
[40:46] volunteering
[40:47] to be a
[40:48] quasi-liaison
[40:49] person if you
[40:50] propose this
[40:51] event, if there's anything I can
[40:52] help with, I'll
[40:53] definitely do it
[40:55] .
[40:56] Why don't we
[40:57] work with the
[40:58] liaisons
[40:59] internally, and as we
[41:00] get closer to
[41:01] our next
[41:02] meetings with our
[41:03] specific
[41:04] committees, let's
[41:05] find out about
[41:06] available dates. And then
[41:07] let's report
[41:08] them to Sean; let's see
[41:09] if any
[41:10] of these dates coincide with the
[41:11] Conservative Council
[41:12] and with the city
[41:12] staff, and then we
[41:14] can choose one.
[41:15] But let's just
[41:16] put it on ourselves
[41:17] as liaisons.
[46:58] I'm glad we came out on the
[46:59] right side.
[47:01] So I want to congratulate
[47:03] everyone for
[47:04] doing something that does
[47:04] n't happen very
[47:06] often, which is making a
[47:07] decision for or against
[47:08] development, especially in the
[47:09] state of Maryland. So I'm
[47:12] happy for our
[47:13] citizens. I'm happy for
[47:15] everyone who didn't want to
[47:16] see rapid
[47:17] growth within the
[47:18] city limits, because that
[47:19] was probably the main
[47:21] reason I
[47:22] ran for
[47:23] office back then. So thank you,
[47:25] Tom, and everyone who
[47:27] played a role in this
[47:28] process. Uh,
[47:29] we all have copies of the
[47:30] city administrator's report
[47:31] , the
[47:32] code compliance report,
[47:33] and the
[47:34] zoning administrator's report. Anything
[47:35] to add, guys, before
[47:36] we continue?
[47:38] Good. Regarding the new
[47:39] case, first
[47:40] we have a
[47:41] road closure to
[47:42] approve to
[47:42] ensure safety
[47:43] in the Nottingham fields.
[47:44] This is for Halloween. Um,
[47:46] from 601 Longbow Road
[47:49] to 811 Longbow Road on
[47:51] Saturday, October 31st, from 5:45 p.m.
[47:54] to 8:30 p.m. Do we have
[47:55] an offer?
[47:56] I will make a motion
[47:57] to approve the "
[47:59] Keep Safe"
[48:00] as described by the
[48:01] council chairman, the closure of
[48:02] Longbow Road.
[48:03] Okay, do we have a second
[48:05] ?
[48:05] I will support.
[48:06] Okay, is there any
[48:07] discussion? I guess the
[48:09] only question
[48:10] I have is, Chief, did
[48:11] they coordinate
[48:12] with you on this
[48:13] and do what
[48:14] they're doing? It
[48:16] seems like
[48:17] every year they
[48:18] come to us. I
[48:20] sent an
[48:21] officer there. They do a great job
[48:22] of
[48:23] covering the
[48:24] Nottingham area, so we have
[48:25] never had
[48:26] any complaints since
[48:27] they have been
[48:27] running.
[48:28] Good.
[48:29] So, I have no problem
[48:30] allowing
[48:31] this as a long period,
[48:32] following your
[48:32] example. And we'll
[48:33] make sure the
[48:34] officer is there
[48:35] that evening too.
[48:36] Okay, thank you.
[48:37] Yes, sir.
[48:38] Okay, we have
[48:39] a proposal and a
[48:39] second for approval.
[48:40] Anyone who supports
[48:42] approving the
[48:43] road closure from
[48:44] 601 Longbow Road to
[48:45] 811 Longbow Road on Saturday,
[48:47] October 31, from 5:45 to 8:30 p.m.
[48:48] Please
[48:48] confirm by
[48:49] saying "yes".
[48:50] Yes.
[48:50] Against? Good. Next up,
[48:53] we have a
[48:54] road closure on Wednesday,
[48:55] November 11th from 10:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
[48:57] at VFW Post 10076. This is a
[49:00] Veterans Day ceremony on the
[49:01] plaza next to
[49:03] City Hall. It
[49:04] will run from Main
[49:05] Street between Center Street
[49:06] and Hood Street. Do we have
[49:08] an offer?
[49:09] I will be submitting a proposal
[49:10] for a
[49:11] road closure related to the
[49:13] Veterans Day ceremony at
[49:14] VFW Post 10076 as
[49:15] described in the application.
[49:16] Okay, do we have a second
[49:18] to approve?
[49:18] Second.
[49:19] Are there any discussions?
[49:22] Okay, all in favor of a
[49:23] road closure on
[49:24] Wednesday, November 11th from
[49:26] 10:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at VFW Post
[49:27] 10076. This
[49:28] will cover
[49:29] Main Street between
[49:30] Center Street
[49:32] and Hood Street.
[49:33] Please confirm this by
[49:34] saying "yes".
[49:35] Yes.
[49:35] Against? Good. And
[49:39] we have another road closure on Saturday,
[49:40] December 5, from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM -
[49:41] Christmas and
[49:42] holiday parade on
[49:44] Main Street. This is
[49:50] Main Street from
[49:51] West Water Street Road
[49:52] to Cottonwood Avenue and
[49:53] Paradise Avenue. Are we?
[50:01] Will you...Will I make a
[50:02] motion to
[50:03] close
[50:09] Main Street for the
[50:10] Christmas celebration
[50:11] and...It will be on Main
[50:12] Street from West
[50:13] Waterville Road to
[50:14] Cottonwood Avenue and
[50:15] Paradise Avenue.
[50:16] Please confirm by
[50:17] saying "yes".
[50:18] Yes.
[50:20] Good. Next, we have
[50:21] approval for the purchase of a
[50:24] budgeted dump truck for the
[50:25] Streets
[50:26] and Roads Department. Do we have
[50:27] an offer?
[50:28] I will make a motion
[50:29] to approve
[50:29] the purchase of a budgeted dump truck
[50:31] for
[50:32] the Streets
[50:33] and Highways Department, just to
[50:33] start the conversation
[50:34] if there is any movement. Do
[50:36] you have a second?
[50:37] I will support.
[50:38] Good. We're, uh,
[50:39] discussing. Do we have
[50:40] any discussions?
[50:41] Yes, I have one or
[50:43] two questions. Um...
[50:45] So, I'm looking at the
[50:46] bottom of the
[50:47] recommendation
[50:48] note under the net
[50:49] purchase price, and
[50:51] then there's a question: "
[50:58] So, the budget was
[50:59] passed in May.
[51:01] It went into effect in
[51:03] July." When did the staff
[51:06] begin to investigate
[51:07] the need to
[51:08] purchase a dump truck?
[51:12] I mean, uh, I
[51:13] know Brian has
[51:15] needed it for quite some
[51:16] time. The dump truck
[51:18] he has now is
[51:19] not in good
[51:20] working order right now, uh, uh
[51:21] . I don't know how many
[51:23] years it's been since
[51:24] he started looking,
[51:25] but I know it's been a
[51:26] long time since
[51:27] I've been here because
[51:28] he mentioned it to me
[51:29] pretty early on when I was
[51:30] starting.
[51:30] Good. My question is
[51:32] basic, because the text
[51:34] says: "We
[51:34] considered an
[51:35] additional
[51:36] dump truck option before
[51:41] recommending the RAM 5500."
[51:43] Public Works recommends RAM
[51:44] primarily because of
[51:46] its immediate
[51:47] availability, which
[51:48] will allow the truck to be delivered,
[51:49] equipped and put into
[51:50] service
[51:51] by the end of
[51:52] December. So I guess
[51:55] my question is
[51:57] , did you
[51:58] prefer another
[52:00] dump truck option
[52:01] over the RAM 5500?
[52:02] No, he didn't
[52:03] prefer one
[52:05] or the other, but he
[52:06] liked two things.
[52:07] First, he
[52:08] liked the diesel
[52:09] version, which was
[52:10] diesel, and the other one was
[52:11] not. And the main goal is
[52:14] its accessibility. We
[52:15] want him to be able to
[52:17] use it
[52:18] this winter for snow.
[52:19] Good. I
[52:34] We
[52:35] will start researching
[52:36] and making a purchase
[52:37] as soon as possible.
[52:39] We will not wait until the
[52:39] last minute.
[52:40] So I'm not saying you
[52:41] need to
[52:42] find these
[52:43] vehicles any
[52:43] more than you might
[52:44] think.
[52:45] Good.
[52:45] Um, most of them,
[52:46] one of the reasons we have
[52:47] n't been able to find one
[52:48] for this winter is
[52:49] because most of
[52:50] them have to be
[52:50] built from scratch. We didn't
[52:52] want that
[52:52] option. Therefore, it is very
[52:54] difficult to find already
[52:54] assembled options of the
[52:56] size we need in our
[52:57] price range.
[52:58] So, those are the two best
[52:59] options we
[53:00] could find, and he
[53:02] preferred RAM for
[53:03] those two reasons.
[53:04] Very good. Thank you.
[53:09] Sir, yes, and I don't believe
[53:11] the city has ever
[53:12] waited for a routine
[53:13] purchase that was
[53:14] budgeted
[53:15] at the beginning of the year to do a
[53:17] month-long
[53:22] study of
[53:23] anything we buy,
[53:24] unless it's an emergency
[53:25] purchase. So I'm a little
[53:27] offended by that
[53:28] comment,
[53:29] Councilwoman Demers.
[53:31] Secondly, I believe it is
[53:33] necessary. I know there are
[53:36] some questions about
[53:37] some of the costs and
[53:38] things related to
[53:40] that. And since I
[53:41] ended up there, I think I
[53:43] visited them
[53:44] one week on the
[53:45] weekend, they had
[53:49] been working on it for a long time
[53:50] because of the body rust and
[53:51] everything else to
[53:52] keep it in
[53:53] working order. And
[53:56] while further
[54:00] research has shown
[54:02] that the
[54:03] vehicles may have
[54:04] low mileage,
[54:05] around 15-16 years, they are
[54:06] probably mainly
[54:08] used for
[54:09] snow removal, which
[54:11] results in
[54:12] salt and everything else
[54:13] . So the frames are probably pretty much
[54:17] worn out now.
[54:19] So this puts
[54:20] our
[54:21] employees and the
[54:22] residents of our
[54:23] city at risk. So while there may
[54:29] be some flexibility
[54:30] in exchange rates and
[54:32] things like that
[54:32] related to certain
[54:34] things, I'm pretty
[54:35] sure they've been
[54:36] looking into this for a while
[54:37] . Public Works is
[54:43] convincing, I
[54:47] mean, in the quality and
[54:48] condition of our
[54:49] equipment, and all over the
[54:50] city they've
[54:51] kept it in
[54:52] working order for
[54:53] much longer than is
[54:55] reasonable, and everything else.
[54:58] So I think that's
[54:59] my
[55:01] comment for now, Chairman
[55:02] .
[55:03] Something else?
[55:08] I think my only
[55:09] question is about the
[55:10] cost of the exchange. Um,
[55:12] 3500-4500, I mean, are
[55:14] these trucks
[55:16] even
[55:17] usable?
[55:18] I'm just wondering
[55:20] if even if they're
[55:21] just backups, are
[55:22] they worth more,
[55:23] staying in the
[55:24] fleet as a
[55:24] potential
[55:25] backup, as a potential
[55:27] use, you know,
[55:28] for whatever. I
[55:29] mean, 3500-4500
[55:31] is not that much
[55:32] money.
[55:33] Um, if
[55:34] vehicles can still
[55:35] be used for
[55:37] any purpose.
[55:38] I mean, I
[55:38] think they're still
[55:39] going, if that's the case, I
[55:40] think they're still
[55:41] going, but
[55:42] how
[55:43] useful are they really
[55:44] for what
[55:45] public
[55:46] works needs them for. I don't think
[55:47] they have
[55:48] much
[55:48] relevance to this. I
[55:49] mean, if they
[55:50] work, you can
[55:51] use them
[55:52] if you need to.
[55:53] Again, yes, it's not that
[55:54] my mileage isn't
[55:55] very high, but the age
[55:56] and wear and tear of these
[55:57] vehicles
[55:58] ...you can't
[55:59] deviate much from the
[56:00] mileage. And we
[56:03] told Councilmember
[56:04] Kelly that we have
[56:04] tried to sell
[56:06] such
[56:07] vehicles privately in the
[56:08] past. It just
[56:11] doesn't work very well.
[56:12] So, you know, it
[56:13] seems like a low
[56:14] price, but we thought
[56:16] it was
[56:16] fair. Good.
[56:18] For what we give.
[56:19] Good. Okay, I appreciate
[56:21] that. Okay, so, um,
[56:24] we have a motion and a
[56:26] second one. This is approval
[56:27] for the purchase of a
[56:28] dump truck for streets
[56:29] and roads. Uh, the total
[56:32] cost or net
[56:34] purchase price
[56:35] would be
[56:37] $124,758. So, everyone
[56:40] who supports the
[56:41] purchase approval, uh
[56:42] , what's this? 2026 Ram 5500
[56:46] regular cab,
[56:48] please mark as
[56:50] "Me". "I". "
[56:52] Closed".
[56:52] Okay, thank you. Okay,
[56:56] now we move on to the
[56:57] ordinances and
[56:58] resolutions. First,
[57:00] we have Resolution 2026-22.
[57:02] Mobile food
[57:03] stations, food
[57:04] vans. This is for
[57:05] acceptance. Do we have
[57:06] an offer?
[57:07] I would like to make a
[57:08] suggestion.
[57:08] Good.
[57:10] I would like to make a
[57:11] motion to
[57:13] reject Ordinance
[57:14] 2026-22, mobile
[57:15] food stands
[57:17] ,
[57:19] food
[57:19] trucks. Okay, do we
[57:21] have a second opinion?
[57:22] I will support.
[57:23] Okay, we're discussing
[57:24] . Are there any
[57:25] discussions?
[57:28] Uh, yeah, I'd
[57:30] just like to understand
[57:31] why you...what's your
[57:32] logic and reasoning
[57:34] for rejecting
[57:35] Resolution 2026-22 in its
[57:37] current form?
[57:43] I have a few
[57:43] comments I
[57:44] can make if it's
[57:46] appropriate, or if
[57:46] anyone else wants to...
[57:48] No. I'll hear
[57:49] you out first. Sorry. Okay,
[57:50] sorry, sir. Sorry.
[57:52] Excuse me, sir.
[57:53] Yes, you...I will answer the
[57:55] question through the
[57:56] council chairman.
[57:56] Yes, it's fine
[57:58] if you...if you
[57:59] think...
[58:00] So, uh...I think
[58:08] this regulation is
[58:09] overly
[58:09] restrictive and
[58:11] economically
[58:11] stifling. I think
[58:15] she's confused.
[58:16] It duplicates in places.
[58:19] She provides
[58:20] recommendations in places
[58:21] . This imposes
[58:26] unreasonable
[58:27] requirements that I
[58:28] think our current
[58:29] traditional restaurants
[58:30] , ahem, may not even be able
[58:32] to meet, and from
[58:33] my initial
[58:34] reading, some of
[58:35] our existing
[58:36] restaurants don't even
[58:37] meet some
[58:39] of these requirements. Hmm, if
[58:45] we're going to move
[58:46] forward with any
[58:48] food truck ordinance, I think we
[58:50] need to take a
[58:51] phased approach. We
[58:53] cannot have
[58:54] protectionist
[58:55] provisions. We must
[58:56] keep the market
[58:57] open and
[58:57] fair. We
[58:58] need to eliminate
[58:59] duplication of
[59:00] regulations.
[59:02] We need clear and
[59:04] simple requirements with
[59:05] minimal
[59:05] interpretation by
[59:06] staff and
[59:07] low
[59:07] administrative
[59:08] costs without the
[59:09] need for
[59:09] additional
[59:10] staff. If we
[59:12] are going to move
[59:13] forward, we need
[59:14] something much more
[59:16] simplistic. And then we
[59:17] can learn from the
[59:18] first two years of
[59:19] implementation. And if
[59:21] we think we
[59:22] need something more
[59:23] reliable, then we
[59:24] can do that. And
[59:26] I have one
[59:27] specific example.
[59:31] Hmm, that's just a small
[59:33] example. So, the
[59:36] seating ordinance
[59:39] states
[59:43] that a mobile
[59:44] food service establishment that
[59:46] intends to
[59:46] use
[59:47] public sidewalks
[59:49] and seating areas
[59:50] must comply with the
[59:53] sidewalk seating requirements
[59:54] set forth in
[59:55] City Code 112
[59:56] 37.1 B 1 D and must
[59:57] comply with those
[59:58] requirements. If
[1:00:02] you look at the current
[1:00:03] code, this
[1:00:04] section states that
[1:00:05] dining at
[1:00:06] sidewalk tables must be
[1:00:07] carried out in
[1:00:08] compliance with the
[1:00:09] following provisions.
[1:00:12] Dining tables must
[1:00:14] be located on
[1:00:15] private property
[1:00:16] adjacent to
[1:00:17] the sidewalk, the
[1:00:17] public right-of-way
[1:00:18] in front of
[1:00:19] the building, and facing the
[1:00:21] road. It further
[1:00:23] states that the
[1:00:24] dining area at tables
[1:00:25] must be
[1:00:26] separated from the
[1:00:27] public right-of-way by an
[1:00:28] appropriate barrier.
[1:00:31] Then it says that
[1:00:33] service hours should
[1:00:34] be limited to 10:00 a.m. to
[1:00:36] 9:00 p.m. Here are some
[1:00:38] examples. So
[1:00:40] now we have this
[1:00:41] other restriction on
[1:00:42] hours that's kind of
[1:00:43] hidden in the code that
[1:00:45] you wouldn't know about
[1:00:46] if you just read
[1:00:47] the ordinance, because
[1:00:48] the ordinance gives a broader
[1:00:50] set of requirements on
[1:00:51] hours of operation, and it
[1:00:52] says here that if you
[1:00:53] want to sit in, you can't
[1:00:54] open
[1:00:56] until 10:00. And then, I
[1:00:58] always think it's
[1:00:59] important to just
[1:01:00] walk down the street. You
[1:01:02] write a resolution, you
[1:01:04] need to walk around
[1:01:05] the district and
[1:01:05] justify
[1:01:06] the resolution. And again
[1:01:11] , I'm going to
[1:01:13] make a caveat
[1:01:14] to this, but
[1:01:15] from what I've
[1:01:16] seen, we have, I
[1:01:18] think, two
[1:01:19] restaurants, one, I
[1:01:20] believe, has
[1:01:21] sidewalk tables. They are not
[1:01:26] separated by a barrier.
[1:01:28] Hmm, it's a public
[1:01:29] facility, it's
[1:01:30] on a
[1:01:31] public
[1:01:31] sidewalk. You can
[1:01:34] only walk around it for about a
[1:01:35] few feet. And
[1:01:38] the hours listed say
[1:01:39] they
[1:01:40] open at 9:00
[1:01:42] AM. The code here
[1:01:43] says you
[1:01:44] shouldn't open
[1:01:46] before 10:00 AM. Plus you
[1:01:47] must have the right of
[1:01:48] way. You should
[1:01:50] have a barrier
[1:01:51] separating your
[1:01:52] tables. I just
[1:01:53] want to say. This
[1:01:56] resolution contains requirements
[1:01:57] that, in my opinion, are
[1:01:59] excessive. And some of
[1:02:01] our traditional
[1:02:03] restaurants, I think,
[1:02:04] don't even
[1:02:04] follow some
[1:02:06] of them. So, if you have
[1:02:09] requirements in
[1:02:10] the code, you must
[1:02:11] comply with them. If
[1:02:12] you don't like what's
[1:02:13] in the code, then
[1:02:15] change it. But,
[1:02:17] going back to the circle,
[1:02:19] it's just too
[1:02:20] burdensome. And I think
[1:02:22] we need to
[1:02:23] start from scratch. I
[1:02:24] suggest maybe
[1:02:26] holding a seminar,
[1:02:27] something like that. Hmm, these are
[1:02:29] my thoughts. Thank you.
[1:02:32] Good. Gus, I can
[1:02:34] speak.
[1:02:35] What about you?
[1:02:37] So, um, my main
[1:02:38] problem with this
[1:02:40] version is that
[1:02:41] I agree with
[1:02:42] Councilman
[1:02:43] DeMotor on
[1:02:44] a few of these
[1:02:45] points. Some of them
[1:02:47] have been changed. Which
[1:02:49] brings me to
[1:02:50] my main point: the
[1:02:52] original version
[1:02:53] was changed,
[1:02:54] corrected, and
[1:02:55] revised so many
[1:02:56] times. Hmm, we don't
[1:02:58] know what's what. It
[1:03:00] got confusing. Hmm,
[1:03:04] so I think we
[1:03:05] need to look at
[1:03:07] this together as a council and
[1:03:08] write down what we
[1:03:09] really need and
[1:03:10] put it into the system, and
[1:03:12] stop putting
[1:03:13] it off and making so many
[1:03:14] changes. Let's
[1:03:19] implement something that
[1:03:20] works for us, that
[1:03:21] protects us, and then
[1:03:23] we can change it
[1:03:24] . Regarding Mr.
[1:03:25] Demuro's point, you know, we
[1:03:26] can implement it,
[1:03:27] and then if we
[1:03:28] need to change
[1:03:29] something that's not working
[1:03:30] properly, we
[1:03:31] can do that too.
[1:03:32] So, my main
[1:03:33] point is that there are
[1:03:35] too many versions.
[1:03:36] We got confused in many of them
[1:03:37] . There are a lot of
[1:03:39] different additions,
[1:03:40] red lines,
[1:03:41] amendments, conclusions,
[1:03:42] everything else, and I
[1:03:43] think it's
[1:03:44] lost in my head.
[1:03:45] So, I
[1:03:46] feel like we
[1:03:47] need to start from
[1:03:48] scratch and get what
[1:03:49] we need in
[1:03:50] books. I'm fine. Are you
[1:03:56] okay? Of course. Hmm,
[1:04:09] just a quick one, I
[1:04:10] generally agree with
[1:04:11] all the comments so
[1:04:12] far. Hmm, I would
[1:04:21] add the word "er,
[1:04:22] targeted." I felt like
[1:04:26] there was some
[1:04:27] targeted...
[1:04:39] Because more than I
[1:04:40] understand the basic
[1:04:41] concepts, some
[1:04:43] implementation issues still
[1:04:44] exist, which may
[1:04:45] cause heartburn for
[1:04:46] residents more than
[1:04:48] businesses. We
[1:04:50] need to find a
[1:04:51] balance. Additionally,
[1:04:54] some of the
[1:04:55] implementation shortcomings on the part of
[1:04:56] staff will be
[1:04:57] compounded by
[1:04:58] some of the requirements that
[1:04:59] even minor
[1:05:00] wording changes
[1:05:01] will be better than
[1:05:02] saying any
[1:05:05] Maryland County Health Department for one
[1:05:06] permit. This
[1:05:09] opens it up to
[1:05:11] everyone, not just
[1:05:12] keeps
[1:05:13] Carroll County. We need to
[1:05:16] use
[1:05:17] existing government
[1:05:18] resources rather than
[1:05:19] create new
[1:05:20] responsibilities for
[1:05:21] staff because
[1:05:22] some of the
[1:05:23] proposed
[1:05:24] timelines were
[1:05:24] terribly short
[1:05:25] to be able to
[1:05:26] obtain the information
[1:05:28] needed for an application,
[1:05:29] especially when it
[1:05:30] was proposed: if
[1:05:31] it is not done
[1:05:32] within a very
[1:05:33] short period of
[1:05:34] time, it is automatically
[1:05:35] approved.
[1:05:40] Thus, in my opinion,
[1:05:41] we are creating certain
[1:05:42] problems in the
[1:05:43] future. I can't
[1:05:44] disagree that
[1:05:45] we need to
[1:05:46] look at this
[1:05:47] issue, and we can
[1:05:48] change it, but
[1:05:49] let's try to
[1:05:50] minimize changes
[1:05:51] later by allowing
[1:05:53] some potential
[1:05:54] flexibility with city
[1:05:55] staff and other
[1:05:56] things. And there were some
[1:05:58] concerns that
[1:05:59] the application was
[1:06:00] too rigid, which
[1:06:01] included that if
[1:06:02] we needed to
[1:06:04] change it, we would have to
[1:06:06] reopen the ordinance
[1:06:07] just to simply
[1:06:08] change one word.
[1:06:09] Good things of this
[1:06:10] nature, just
[1:06:11] little things to
[1:06:12] implement for
[1:06:13] greater implementation.
[1:06:15] Um, but I can agree with many of the most
[1:06:16] basic
[1:06:17] concepts that were
[1:06:19] added to it
[1:06:20] .
[1:06:21] Maybe just sit down
[1:06:23] together and work out
[1:06:24] some minor
[1:06:25] flexibilities. I
[1:06:27] mean, I, I, I'm flexible.
[1:06:29] I agree with
[1:06:29] nonpartisanship in
[1:06:30] economics and things of
[1:06:32] that nature, but
[1:06:33] we can't lose
[1:06:34] sight of the
[1:06:35] potential
[1:06:36] problems or
[1:06:39] regulations that
[1:06:40] people can drive through,
[1:06:42] excuse me, in a
[1:06:43] food truck to, uh,
[1:06:45] get ahead quickly or
[1:06:46] something. There is a good remedy
[1:06:48] for this. I think
[1:06:51] we're 90-90% on it. And
[1:06:55] thank you to Councilor Evans,
[1:06:56] Kelly, and Demuda for
[1:06:57] adding their
[1:06:58] suggestions to this.
[1:07:01] It brought us closer. And
[1:07:02] thank you, Tom, for
[1:07:03] handling all the
[1:07:04] spelling changes.
[1:07:06] You know, Tom, I
[1:07:07] actually think that's how it's going to go
[1:07:09] ,
[1:07:10] judging from what I
[1:07:11] see. Um, for me, this
[1:07:12] process was just
[1:07:13] messy. Hmm, that's
[1:07:15] too messy. This is
[1:07:16] unclean, and this is not the
[1:07:17] way I
[1:07:18] think this council
[1:07:19] has been operating. At least
[1:07:21] for the past
[1:07:22] few years. Um,
[1:07:23] unfortunately, I'm going to
[1:07:24] do this, uh, because of the
[1:07:25] actual, uh, creation of
[1:07:27] legislation, I don't
[1:07:28] have a say in the
[1:07:29] process. But, uh
[1:07:31] , I'll give you some advice,
[1:07:32] mostly because as the
[1:07:33] chairman of the council, right now I
[1:07:35] feel like there are
[1:07:36] too many chiefs and
[1:07:37] not enough
[1:07:38] Indians. Each of
[1:07:39] you worked
[1:07:40] in isolation, coming up with
[1:07:41] ideas, and then just
[1:07:42] crossing something out and
[1:07:44] adding, and this, and that. And
[1:07:48] whoever manages it
[1:07:50] gets feedback from the
[1:07:51] board, puts it into a
[1:07:52] form, and then submits it.
[1:07:55] But now it looks like
[1:07:56] you, it looks like you, and I
[1:07:57] thought it was you.
[1:08:00] Work together.
[1:08:03] Because it was the
[1:08:03] longest process
[1:08:04] for what was supposed to
[1:08:06] be a simple
[1:08:06] resolution that I have ever
[1:08:08] seen.
[1:08:10] So stop
[1:08:11] working on your own
[1:08:12] . Stop
[1:08:13] trying to manage
[1:08:14] everything yourself.
[1:08:16] Work together without a
[1:08:17] quorum in the back
[1:08:18] . You know, and
[1:08:21] then bring
[1:08:22] something
[1:08:22] suitable to the meeting that we
[1:08:23] can send to the
[1:08:25] planning commission,
[1:08:26] get feedback, and
[1:08:27] then vote on
[1:08:28] and move on. It
[1:08:29] 's been almost a year, and
[1:08:31] honestly, I'm
[1:08:32] tired of talking about it
[1:08:33] . So I don't
[1:08:34] know if it's you, or
[1:08:36] all of you, deal with
[1:08:37] it. But it's too much,
[1:08:40] and it's messy, so I'm
[1:08:41] glad that, you know,
[1:08:42] Councilor DeMotor, I'm
[1:08:44] glad that you
[1:08:44] came forward with this,
[1:08:46] because, I'll be honest with
[1:08:47] you, if it had gone
[1:08:48] any other way, I would
[1:08:50] n't have signed it.
[1:08:51] Because it's a mess.
[1:08:52] I'll put it there. I
[1:08:54] can lead
[1:08:54] the rewrite, and
[1:08:55] I'm going to put
[1:08:56] it out there for you
[1:08:57] guys to figure out on your
[1:08:58] own.
[1:08:59] Of course.
[1:08:59] And then, and then we will
[1:09:01] understand, sir.
[1:09:02] So
[1:09:04] there is no further discussion now.
[1:09:05] We have a motion
[1:09:06] to reject or not
[1:09:08] adopt Ordinance
[1:09:10] 2026-22 regarding MFUs and
[1:09:11] food trucks. Hmm,
[1:09:13] everyone who supports
[1:09:15] the rejection of
[1:09:16] Resolution 2026-22,
[1:09:17] please mark it with
[1:09:19] "I do." "I". "
[1:09:21] Against"? Okay, thanks,
[1:09:22] guys. I think this is the
[1:09:23] right decision.
[1:09:25] Next, we have Resolution
[1:09:27] 2026-24. This is a transfer of
[1:09:28] real estate,
[1:09:29] i.e.,
[1:09:30] Straw's property. She is up for
[1:09:31] adoption. Do you
[1:09:32] want to make
[1:09:33] a suggestion?
[1:09:34] I will make a motion
[1:09:35] to approve the
[1:09:36] transfer of
[1:09:37] real estate,
[1:09:38] i.e. the
[1:09:39] Straw property, for the years 2026-24.
[1:09:40] Okay, we have a second
[1:09:41] .
[1:09:41] I will support.
[1:09:42] Okay, is there any
[1:09:43] discussion?
[1:09:45] Uh, I could say
[1:09:47] it's related to the
[1:09:47] ring road,
[1:09:49] but it's more of a
[1:09:49] clarification
[1:09:50] ordinance issued to
[1:09:51] Straw by the owners of the
[1:09:52] Straw property.
[1:09:56] Maybe Barney can,
[1:09:57] in order not to pressure you,
[1:09:58] explain it a little
[1:09:59] better, because I know it has
[1:10:01] more to do with
[1:10:02] mutual setbacks
[1:10:03] and aligning
[1:10:05] their property boundaries
[1:10:06] and so on. I think you
[1:10:07] could probably
[1:10:08] explain it better
[1:10:09] than I could.
[1:10:11] Of course. So, it's an
[1:10:13] exchange. When you
[1:10:17] look at the
[1:10:18] real estate, you'll
[1:10:19] see that, um, the way
[1:10:20] Rising
[1:10:21] Ridge Road was relocated,
[1:10:23] um, for the loop, created a
[1:10:24] narrow strip that
[1:10:25] the city would have to
[1:10:26] service.
[1:10:30] At the same time, Straw
[1:10:31] also has a very long,
[1:10:32] narrow section that is
[1:10:34] now behind a,
[1:10:35] um, depression that would be harder for them
[1:10:37] to maintain. So it makes
[1:10:40] sense
[1:10:41] to reconcile things somehow. The exchange,
[1:10:44] ahem, is not an equal
[1:10:45] distribution of, ahem,
[1:10:46] square feet.
[1:10:50] So, I think that's the
[1:10:51] main reason for the, um,
[1:10:52] difference in cost.
[1:10:54] Good.
[1:10:55] And thank you, Barney.
[1:10:59] And just to
[1:11:00] clarify, there's, um, a
[1:11:01] cash exchange for
[1:11:02] this of about or
[1:11:03] within six thousand
[1:11:05] dollars, correct,
[1:11:06] Tom?
[1:11:09] For the purchase of part of the
[1:11:11] Straw property.
[1:11:13] The reason you
[1:11:14] need this
[1:11:15] ordinance is
[1:11:16] because the city is also
[1:11:17] transferring property. It's
[1:11:19] an exchange, if you will. Both the
[1:11:20] state code and
[1:11:22] therefore our statute
[1:11:23] require that this be
[1:11:24] done by ordinance
[1:11:25] with public
[1:11:26] hearings, which
[1:11:27] apparently took place
[1:11:28] today.
[1:11:29] Yes. Good. Perfectly.
[1:11:31] Thank you. That's all for now.
[1:11:32] Chairman, thank you. Is there
[1:11:34] anyone else?
[1:11:35] I have a question.
[1:11:36] Of course.
[1:11:37] So, there are two questions.
[1:11:38] First, is this on
[1:11:43] equal terms, caring
[1:11:44] for our citizens,
[1:11:45] or is this what the
[1:11:47] Straws want? This is what
[1:11:49] they asked for.
[1:11:50] Yes. Yes, yes. They are
[1:11:52] very interested in
[1:11:53] this. Yes.
[1:11:53] Good. And then, and I'm
[1:11:55] just asking
[1:11:56] questions because I'm a
[1:11:57] council member and I'm here to
[1:11:58] represent my
[1:11:59] constituents, so I have the
[1:12:00] right to ask
[1:12:01] questions. Um, was this
[1:12:04] something that could have been
[1:12:05] foreseen before
[1:12:06] we built the
[1:12:08] roundabout,
[1:12:09] or did it only become apparent
[1:12:10] after the fact?
[1:12:13] Like, is this something
[1:12:14] we should have
[1:12:16] known before
[1:12:17] construction started in
[1:12:18] terms of what
[1:12:19] parts of the pie and
[1:12:20] property would be
[1:12:21] cut and what parts wouldn't,
[1:12:22] or, you know, that's my
[1:12:23] question.
[1:12:26] Should it have been
[1:12:27] done in advance?
[1:12:29] This is what the Straws
[1:12:30] expressed, uh, as
[1:12:31] their preference. Hmm,
[1:12:33] should this have been done
[1:12:35] ? Not necessarily, uh,
[1:12:36] but it makes sense. So
[1:12:38] they brought it to
[1:12:39] our attention and we
[1:12:41] agreed that it made
[1:12:42] sense. So, this is the path
[1:12:44] we took.
[1:12:46] Good. And a little
[1:12:49] remark, uh,
[1:12:50] you know, well, I'll make a
[1:12:52] remark because I
[1:12:53] see it. The third
[1:12:54] statement "
[1:12:55] given that", where it
[1:12:56] says: "Given the
[1:12:57] proposed
[1:12:58] roundabout",
[1:12:59] in my opinion, should have been
[1:13:00] written "
[1:13:01] built roundabout",
[1:13:02] because it has already
[1:13:03] been built. But this
[1:13:06] statement is "
[1:13:06] given", therefore.
[1:13:11] Everywhere you say "
[1:13:12] built". Good.
[1:13:17] Any further
[1:13:18] discussions? We have a
[1:13:21] second proposal, uh
[1:13:22] , regarding the acceptance of
[1:13:23] the transfer of real
[1:13:24] estate, uh, the
[1:13:26] Straw property. Uh, everyone who is "in favor
[1:13:27] ", please
[1:13:28] mark yourself by saying
[1:13:30] "I do." "
[1:13:30] I". "
[1:13:31] Against"? Okay, and the
[1:13:32] last resolution, uh
[1:13:34] , resolution 2026-27.
[1:13:36] It aims to
[1:13:37] clarify that
[1:13:37] private parks in the
[1:13:38] R1 zone should be a
[1:13:39] special exception
[1:13:40] , not an exercise of
[1:13:41] right. This is for
[1:13:42] presentation and
[1:13:43] referral to the
[1:13:43] planning commission. Do
[1:13:45] we have a proposal
[1:13:46] to present?
[1:13:47] I would like to propose
[1:13:49] that
[1:13:50] Ordinance
[1:13:52] 2026-27 be enacted to
[1:13:53] amend the articles and
[1:13:55] sections of Chapter 112 entitled
[1:13:56] "Zoning",
[1:13:58] Article 4 entitled "
[1:13:59] Regulations
[1:14:01] Governing Residential
[1:14:02] Districts", and Section 112-23
[1:14:04] entitled "R1 District".
[1:14:07] Okay, do we have a second
[1:14:09] ?
[1:14:09] I will support.
[1:14:10] Okay, this will be
[1:14:11] forwarded to the
[1:14:12] planning commission. Uh, we have
[1:14:13] no unfinished
[1:14:14] business, and we don't have a
[1:14:16] closed session.
[1:14:17] So, for now, uh, I'll
[1:14:18] consider the motion
[1:14:20] to postpone.
[1:14:21] I will make a motion
[1:14:22] to postpone
[1:14:23] earlier than usual
[1:14:24] . Thank you, Mr.
[1:14:25] Chairman. Do
[1:14:27] we have a second?
[1:14:28] I will support.
[1:14:29] Okay, everyone who
[1:14:29] supports
[1:14:30] the transfer,
[1:14:31] please mark it by
[1:14:32] saying "Me,
[1:14:32] Me."
[1:14:33] Nobody is in favor.